312 | MR. C. A. WRIGHT ON THE WEASEL OF MALTA. [Apr. 6 
outer of the fore foot very conspicuous, the third twice as strong as 
the second. No trace of an opening for the eye or ears, or of the “tail 
can be discovered. 
millim. 
Total length... is 22 nomen stesso: ss ptereee§ 243 
Width of the muffle, 22 t:2322 Oe Blak i 9 
Length of first-front.claw: 25.7).-.$ai..-:\ us! eee 4 
3» -Second..*:",, an tetelfutohs, os. 8..6 Gioysteeaeeeioes 12 
4 third 5512) dais arch ce. oun apes) 
jo oR OMEER: (Nt kek Reet tekes ccna 5 
Length of fourth (and longest) hind claw........ 10 
Had. Pirie Forest, British Caffraria. 
6. On the Specific Identity of the Weasel found in Malta. 
By Cuas. A. Wricut, C.M.Z.S. 
[Received April 5, 1875.] 
The animal, of the order of Carnivora, a specimen of which I have 
the honour to exhibit to the Society this evening, inhabits the islands 
of Malta and Gozo in a wild state, and is by no means uncommon 
in the neighbourhood of farmyards, where it not unfrequently com- 
mits ravages on the poultry and other small inmates. It is also 
partial to eggs. It is well known to the country people under the 
name of Ballottra. It has been usual with writers on the natural 
history of Malta to refer to this animal as Mustela vulgaris, or the 
Common Weasel of Europe. That they are mistaken a glance at the 
specimen will show. It will be noticed that it is very much larger than 
the Weasel, even exceeding in size the Stoat (Mustela erminea), to 
which perhaps it bears most resemblance. Again, the tail is pro- 
portionally longer than in the Weasel ; but instead of the end being 
black, as is the case with the Stoat or "Ermine at all seasons, the ter- 
mination is scarcely perceptibly darker. The colour of the Maltese 
species is generally chestnut, more or less dark in different indivi- 
. duals, and sometimes mixed’ with grey, especially in examples in 
winter. The underparts of the body, neck, and throat, as well as 
the toes and margin of the upper lip, are creamy white. The speci- 
men I now exhibit does not show the natural colour, it being very 
much bleached by exposure to the rays of the sun penetrating through 
a glass case in which the specimen. was kept. Its length from root 
of tail to tip of snout is about 13 inches, and the tail 47 inches, 
making a total length of 173 inches. I have frequently met with 
this species while out shooting, and on one occasion saw one making 
off across a field with what looked like a young one in its mouth. It 
takes refuge, and brings up its young, in the loose stone walls which 
everywhere traverse the country. 
This animal appears to come very close to the Boccamele, which 
was first discovered by Cetti, in Sardinia, about a century ago, and 
